Operational since 1955, the Boeing B-52 served as the Strategic Air Command’s main long-range heavy bomber after its first flight on Apr. 15, 1952, and nearly 750 were built by the end of production in Oct. 1963, including 193 G models. The B-52G was designed to reduce overall aircraft weight to improve performance, with a redesigned tail, a modified wing sealed for fuel, and the tail gunner moved to a remote firing station in the forward crew compartment. It also added Forward Looking Infrared and Steerable Low Light TV systems under the nose for navigation. Boeing in Wichita built all 193 B-52Gs, with the first rolling out in the summer of 1958. The G model could carry two AGM-28 Hound Dog missiles like the F model and was also equipped to carry the GAM-87 Skybolt and later the Air Launched Cruise Missile and the Short Range Attack Missile. The B-52G was used extensively in 1991 during Operation Desert Storm before being phased out of operational service in 1994. Aircraft 57-6509 flew 35 missions, including the first three low level missions during Desert Storm from Jan-Feb 1991, and accumulated more than 100 missions over Southeast Asia before retiring from service in Nov 1992 and being transferred to the 8th AF Museum.